Installing structure for modularized electronic device

ABSTRACT

An installing structure for modularized electronic structure is provided, including a first receiving element, a second receiving element, a first buckling element and a second buckling element, wherein the first receiving element and the second buckling element are of the same structure in order to simplify molding structure for the installing structure, and solving problems such as time-consuming disassembling, tool requirement, complicated structure and high cost encountered in the prior art

FIELD OF THE INVENTION

The present invention relates to an installing structure, inparticularly, an installing structure for modularized electronicdevices.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

The ever-changing developments of technologies in the informationelectronic industry have brought about a vast variety of products andtechnologies. Modularized electronic devices required for dataaccessing, such as Floppy Disk Devices (FDDs), Hard Disk Drives (HDDs)and Compact Disks (CDs), are one of the applications in the informationelectronic industry.

Notebook or desktop computers currently on the market can be generallycategorized into slim type and full-featured type. The full-featuredtype is the so-called “All-In-One” model, that is, all the modularizedelectronic components are incorporated into the main broad, while slimtype computers usually have detachable modularized electronic devices,which are not provided on the main board, so the slim type computers arelighter but require installation through installing structures to themain broads when used.

Common types of installing structures for fixing modularized electronicdevices are screws or securing frame, such as those shown TW PatentPublication No. 481294, No. 529276 and No. 572559.

For example, screw holes are conventionally made in the installingstructure that encloses a modularized electronic device in order forfixing. Thus, tools are needed to unscrew the screws, and themodularized electronic devices are pushed inwards in order to bedetached. However, this type of assembling/disassembling process istime-consuming and requires the aid of tools, which can create a lot ofinconveniences when in use. For example, a peripheral device (i.e. themodularized electronic device) described in TW Patent Publication No.572559 adopts this kind of securing structure.

TW Patent Publication No. 481294 discloses a peripheral fixing devicefor fixing a modularized electronic device to a computer main board. Afirst and a second screw holes are provided at opposing sides of themodularized electronic device, respectively. The prior art of thispatent describes using screws to attach a floppy disc. The peripheralfixing device in this patent includes a supporting component forconnecting a computer main board; at least one wedging element having afirst wedge block corresponding to a first screw hole provided in thesupporting component, such that the first wedging block wedges into thefirst screw hole; and at least a second wedging element having anelastic second wedging block corresponding to a second screw holeprovided in the supporting structure, such that the second wedging blockwedges into the second screw hole. The modularized electronic device iswedged in the supporting structure via the elasticity of the secondwedging element.

Although the above patent solves the problems of time consumed forassembling/disassembling and the necessity of tools in the case ofutilizing screws to fasten the modularized electronic device, thisstructure is nonetheless complicated and the cost of molding isunfavorably high.

In TW Patent Publication No. 549476, a securing frame for assemblingmore than one computer driving devices (modularized electronic devices)is disclosed. The securing frame is integrally formed with a singlepiece of metal, including a base, ears extending outwardly from twosides of the base, such that the securing frame is fastened inside thehousing of the computer main board; a side plate bent from the two sidesof the base to be integrally and vertically formed; a sheltering platedetachably assembled to the back side of the base to be used incombination with a straddling plate.

Although this prior art is capable of assembling a variety of computerdriving devices, i.e. modularized electronic devices, the metal securingframe still requires screws to fasten the modularized electronicdevices, thus the previous-discussed problems still exist.

Therefore, there is a need for a simple and effective installingstructure for modularized electronic devices that simplifies thestructure and reduces the lengthy time consumed forassembling/disassembling, the costs, the necessary tools that wouldotherwise encountered when screws or securing frames are used forfastening the modularized electronic modules in the prior art.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

In the light of forgoing drawbacks, an objective of the presentinvention is to provide an installing structure for modularizedelectronic devices for simplifying molding developing structure.

Another objective of the present invention is to provide an installingstructure for modularized electronic devices that reduces the productioncost.

Still another objective of the present invention is to provide aninstalling structure for modularized electronic devices without the needof extra tools to carry out the disassembling procedure.

Still another objective of the present invention is to provide an easyand effective installing structure for modularized electronic devices.

In accordance with the above and other objectives, the present inventionprovides an installing structure for a modularized electronic device,which comprises a first receiving element, a second receiving element, afirst buckling element and a second buckling element.

Preferably, the first receiving element and the second receiving elementare made of elastic material, each of which comprises a first fastener,a second fastener provided away from the first fastener, a thirdfastener provided at an opposite side of the first fastener, and anopening provided opposite to the first fastener away from the thirdfastener. Each of the first buckling element and the second bucklingelement comprises an elastic buckling part at one end thereof. Theelastic buckling part is preferably a hook structure and secured by thefirst fastener of the first receiving element, the first bucklingelement at the other end away from its elastic buckling part is securedby the second fastener of the first receiving element, and the elasticbuckling part of the second buckling element is secured by the thirdfastener of the first receiving element, thereby when the secondreceiving element is counter-clasped to the first receiving element, theopening of the first receiving element and the opening of the secondreceiving element are located at two sides opposite to each other, andthe second buckling element at the other end away from its elasticbuckling part is secured by the second fastener of the second receivingelement.

The first fastener and the third fastener are structures vertically bentinwards from two sides of the respective first and second receivingelement. The second fastener is an L-shaped structure vertically bentupwards from the bottom of the respective first and second receivingelement. One side of the opening is a structure selected from the groupconsisting of a saw-tooth structure, a stepping structure, a ripplingstructure and a concave-convex structure. In one preferred embodiment,each of the first receiving element and the second receiving elementfurther comprises a plurality of first joining parts, a plurality ofsecond joining parts correspondingly provided to the first joiningparts, a stopper provided at one side thereof, two third joining partsvertically bent upwards from respective side thereof. The first joiningparts and second joining parts are corresponding concave-convexstructures, and the stoppers are structures with corresponding concaveand convex portions. Each of the first buckling element and the secondbuckling element further comprises a fourth joining part correspondinglyengaging the respective third joining part. The fourth joining parts areconcave structures for engaging the third joining parts and secured bythe third joining parts.

Compared to the prior art, the installing structure for the modularizedelectronic devices of the present invention is designed withcounter-clasping components with the same structure, eliminating thecomplicated structure of the prior art and simplifying the moldingstructure. Moreover, the present invention eliminates the need for extratools and reduces the time consumed in assembling/disassembling screwsor securing frames. Thus, the present invention provides an effectiveand simple installing structure that enables quick and easyassembling/disassembling of the modularized electronic devices,simplifies molding developing structure and reduces production cost.

The present invention will be described below with examples of detailedembodiments. Other advantages and effects of the present invention willbe readily appreciated by those skilled in the art via the disclosure ofthe present specification. The present invention can be practiced byother embodiments, and the various modifications and variations made todetails of the present invention should therefore be within the scope ofthe present invention.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

The present invention can be more fully understood by reading thefollowing detailed description of the preferred embodiments, withreference made to the accompanying drawings, wherein:

FIG. 1 shows an exploding diagram of the installing structure formodularized electronic devices according to a preferred embodiment ofthe present invention;

FIGS. 2A to 2F show schematic diagrams of the first receivingelement/second receiving element, wherein FIG. 2A shows the top view ofthe first receiving element/second receiving element, FIG. 2B show afront view of FIG. 2A, FIG. 2C shows a rear view of FIG. 2A, FIG. 2Dshows a left side view of FIG. 2A, FIG. 2E shows a right side view ofFIG. 2A, FIG. 2F shows a 3-D view of FIG. 2A;

FIGS. 3A and 3B show schematic diagrams of the first bucklingelement/second buckling element, wherein FIG. 3A shows a top view of thefirst buckling element/second buckling element and FIG. 3B shows a sideview of FIG. 3A;

FIGS. 4A and 4B show assembling schematic diagrams for securing themodularized electronic device to the installing structure; and

FIG. 5 shows a schematic diagram of a status where the modularizedelectronic device is secured to the installing structure.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE EMBODIMENTS

The various aspects of the present invention will now be described indetail, but they should not be construed as to limit the scope of thepresent invention in any way.

It should be noted that the installing structure for modularizedelectronic devices of the present invention is applicable to anymodularized electronic devices, such as FDDs, HDDs, and CDs that requiredata accessing. Since the structures and operating principles of theseelectronic devices are conventional except for the installing structure,only the structures directly related to the present invention are shownin the figures while the rest are omitted for conciseness and clarity ofthe descriptions.

FIGS. 1 to 5 are various aspects of the installing structure formodularized electronic devices according to a preferred embodiment ofthe present invention. As shown in FIG. 1, an installing structure formodularized electronic devices of this embodiment comprises a firstreceiving element 1, a second receiving element 3, a first bucklingelement 5 and a second buckling element 7. A modularized electronicdevice 10 can be installed to a computer main board casing (not shown)by the installing structure. The first and second receiving elements 1and 3 and the first and second buckling element 5 and 7 are respectivelythe same structures. However, The first and second receiving elements 1and 3 and the first and second buckling element 5 and 7 and detailedstructures thereof are respectively designated with different referencesymbols to aid understanding of the descriptions and to accentuate thefeatures of the present invention.

As shown in FIGS. 2A to 2F, the first receiving element 1 and the secondreceiving element 3 respectively has a first fastener 11, 31, a secondfastener 13, 33 provided away from the first fastener 11, 31, a thirdfastener 15, 35 provided at the opposite side of the first fastener 11,31, and an opening 17, 37 provided opposite to the first fastener 11, 31and away from the third fastener 15, 35. The first receiving element 1and the second receiving element 3 are selectively made from elasticmaterial, such as plastic, but not limited to plastic only. The firstfasteners 11, 31 and the third fasteners 15, 35 at the opposite sidethereof can be of the same structure, for example, a structure thatvertically bent inwards from two sides, but not limited to this. Thesecond fasteners 13, 33 are L-shaped structures that are vertically bentupwards from the first receiving element 1 and the second receivingelement 3, respectively. The openings 17, 37 can be saw-tooth, stepping,rippling, or other convex-concave structures. As shown in FIG. 2F, eachof the first receiving element 1 and the third receiving element 3 mayfurther comprise a plurality of first joining parts 12, 32, a pluralityof second joining parts 14, 34 provided correspond to the first joiningparts 12, 32, a stopper 16, 36 provided at a side of the first andsecond receiving elements 1, 3 between the first joining parts 12, 32and the second joining parts 14, 34, and two third joining parts 18, 38bent upwards from two sides of the first and second receiving elements1, 3. In this embodiment, the first joining parts 12, 32 and the secondjoining parts 14, 34 are corresponding concave-convex structures, andthe stopper 16 and stopper 36 are structures with corresponding concaveand convex portions. However, in other embodiments, the first joiningparts 12, 32 and the second joining parts 14, 34 and the stopper 16 andthe stopper 36 can be any corresponding structures that allows the firstreceiving element 1 and the second receiving element 3 to join togethercorrespondingly. For example, the first joining parts 12, 32 and thesecond joining parts 14, 34 can take the forms of wedging blocks andopenings, respectively; the stopper 16 and stopper 36 can take the formof corresponding tenon and groove, respectively.

As shown in FIGS. 3A and 3B, the first buckling element 5 and the secondbuckling element 7 are provided with an elastic buckling part 51, 71 ata side thereof, respectively. Each of the elastic buckling parts 51, 71can be for example a hook structure for abutting the first bucklingelement 5 and second buckling element 7, such that the elastic bucklingpart 51 is secured by the first fastener 11 of the first receivingelement 1, the first buckling element 5 at the other side away from theelastic buckling part 51 is secured by the second fastener 13 of thefirst receiving element 1, and the elastic buckling part 71 of thesecond buckling element 7 is secured by the third fastener 15 of thefirst receiving element 1. When the second receiving element 3counter-clasps to the first receiving element 1, the opening 17 of thefirst receiving element 1 and the opening 37 of the second receivingelement 3 are located at opposite sides from each other, and the secondbuckling element 7 at the other side away from the elastic buckling part71 is secured by the second fastener 33 of the second receiving element3.

In FIG. 3A, the first buckling element 5 and the second buckling element7 further comprises a fourth joining part 53, 73 correspondinglyengaging the third joining part 18, 38, respectively. Although in thisembodiment, the fourth joining parts 53, 73 are shown as concavestructures for engaging the third joining parts 18, 38, thereby beingsecured by the third joining parts 18, 38. However, the fourth joiningparts 53, 73 are not limited to the ones shown, but can be any suitablestructures as long as they can correspondingly engage to the thirdjoining parts 18, 38.

When the modularized electronic device 10 is to be assembled to theinstalling structure of the present invention, as shown in FIG. 4A, thefirst buckling element 5 and the second buckling element 7 can befirstly put in place in one of the first receiving element 1 and thesecond receiving element 3. In this embodiment, the first bucklingelement 5 and the second buckling element 7 are incorporated to thefirst receiving element 1. Meanwhile, the elastic buckling part 51 issecured by the first fastener 11 of the first receiving element 1, andthe first buckling element 5 at the other side away from the elasticbuckling part 51 is secured by the second fastener 13 of the firstreceiving element 1, and the elastic buckling part 71 of the secondbuckling element 7 is secured by the third fastener 15 of the firstreceiving element 1.

Thereafter, one end of the modularized electronic device 10 is slidebetween the first fastener 11 and the third fastener 15, as shown inFIG. 4B. The other end of the modularized electronic device 10 isslightly titled upwards, so that after the entire modularized electronicdevice 10 is inserted, it can be pressed into the first receivingelement 1. The stopper 16 in FIG. 4A abuts against the modularizedelectronic device 10 to prevent it from falling out. Finally, the secondreceiving element 3 is counter-clasped to the first receiving element 1,thereby completing the installation as shown in FIG. 5.

When one wishes to disassemble the modularized electronic device 10 fromthe installing structure of the present invention, one simply pressesdown the openings 17, 37, such that the first fasteners 11, 31 and theelastic buckling parts 51, 71 exert a push force on the modularizedelectronic device 10 to release it from the installing structure.

It should be noted that the above assembling procedure is only forillustrative purpose, and is not limited to those described. The orderof assembling can be changed, which are only easy modifications and/orequivalents of the present invention made by one with ordinary skill inthe art.

The present invention is different from the prior art in that thepresent invention uses a first receiving element 1 and a secondreceiving element 2 with the same structure, eliminating the need forpreparing different molds, thus simplifying molding structure.Additionally, the cost of preparing the same structure is lower,therefore reducing the cost of production. Moreover, the presentinvention eliminates the need for extra tools and reduces the timeconsumed in assembling/disassembling screws or securing frames. Thus,the present invention provides an effective and simple installingstructure.

In summary, compared to the prior art, the present invention simplifiesthe molding structure, reduces the production cost, and eliminateslengthy time and extra tools for assembling/disassembling.

The above-described embodiments are only used to illustrate the variousfeatures and effects of the present invention. Other advantages andeffects will be readily appreciated by those skilled in the art via thedetailed description disclosed in this specification. The presentinvention can be practiced by other embodiments, and should thereforecover various modifications and variations made to the herein-describeddetails of the present invention, provided they fall within the scope ofthe present invention as defined in the following appended claims.

1. An installing structure for a modularized electronic device,comprising: a first receiving element and a second receiving element,each comprising a first fastener, a second fastener provided away fromthe first fastener, a third fastener provided at an opposite side of thefirst fastener, and an opening provided opposite to the first fasteneraway from the third fastener; and a first buckling element and a secondbuckling element, each comprising an elastic buckling part at one endthereof, wherein the elastic buckling part is secured by the firstfastener of the first receiving element, the first buckling element atthe other end away from its elastic buckling part is secured by thesecond fastener of the first receiving element, and the elastic bucklingpart of the second buckling element is secured by the third fastener ofthe first receiving element, whereby when the second receiving elementis counter-clasped to the first receiving element, the opening of thefirst receiving element and the opening of the second receiving elementare located at two sides opposite to each other, and the second bucklingelement at the other end away from its elastic buckling part is securedby the second fastener of the second receiving element.
 2. Theinstalling structure as claimed in claim 1, wherein the first receivingelement and the second receiving element are structures made of elasticmaterial.
 3. The installing structure as claimed in claim 1, wherein thefirst fastener and the third fastener are structures vertically bentinwards from two sides of the respective first and second receivingelement.
 4. The installing structure as claimed in claim 1, wherein thesecond fastener is an L-shaped structure vertically bent upwards fromthe bottom of the respective first and second receiving element.
 5. Theinstalling structure as claimed in claim 1, wherein one side of theopening is a structure selected from the group consisting of a saw-toothstructure, a stepping structure, a rippling structure and aconcave-convex structure.
 6. The installing structure as claimed inclaim 1, wherein each of the first receiving element and the secondreceiving element further comprises a plurality of first joining parts,a plurality of second joining parts correspondingly provided to thefirst joining parts, a stopper provided at one side thereof, two thirdjoining parts vertically bent upwards from respective side thereof. 7.The installing structure as claimed in claim 6, wherein the firstjoining parts and second joining parts are corresponding concave-convexstructures, and the stoppers are structures with corresponding concaveand convex portions.
 8. The installing structure as claimed in claim 6,wherein each of the first buckling element and the second bucklingelement further comprises a fourth joining part correspondingly engagingthe respective third joining part.
 9. The installing structure asclaimed in claim 8, wherein the fourth joining parts are concavestructures.
 10. The installing structure as claimed in claim 1, whereineach of the elastic buckling parts is a hook structure.